C’garh Institutes ‘Chendru Award’ To Promote Rural Tourism
Chendru Mandavi died at his home in Narayanpur district on September 18, 2013: Reports
RAIPUR: In the first of its kind initiative to give Chhattisgarh’s rich rural culture, tribal traditions, natural beauty and distinctive way of life a new identity on the national and international tourism map, the state government has launched the ‘Chendru State Rural Tourism Award’.
The award carrying a cash prize of Rs one lakh is named after Chendru, a tribal in Abujhmad under Narayanpur district in south Bastar of Chhattisgarh whose friendship with tiger cub in the forest in his childhood days was picturized in a Hollywood movie in the 1960s.
The tribal boy featured in the Hollywood epic of 1960, ‘The Jungle Tale’.
Chendru Mandavi died at his home in Narayanpur district on September 18, 2013, following prolonged illness.
The Chhattisgarh government’s tourism department has introduced the award to recognize individuals and institutions making outstanding and impactful contributions to rural tourism, a spokesman of the Chhattisgarh government said on Tuesday.“The ‘Chendru State Rural Tourism Award Rules, 2025’ have been notified and will be applicable across Chhattisgarh”, officials said.
With this award, the selected individual or institution making a notable contribution to rural tourism will receive a cash prize of Rs one lakh along with a certificate of appreciation.“The initiative aims not only to recognize exemplary work, but also to promote rural tourism as a means of generating local employment and livelihoods while preserving cultural heritage and advancing sustainable development”, state tourism and culture minister Rajesh Agrawal said.
He said that the villages of Chhattisgarh are the living heritage of the state’s culture, traditions and natural wealth, and added that the state government is working to ensure that the benefits of tourism extend beyond established tourist destinations to remote rural and tribal areas as well.